Beyond Belief
Classroom and Community
This page is dedicated to giving teachers and community and faith-based leaders the resources they need for sharing BEYOND BELIEF with students and audiences. “Teaching BEYOND BELIEF” is a standards-based Study, Screening and Action Guide written by Columbia University Teachers College that is appropriate for Grades 7-16 and adult audiences.
Special video modules are also available streaming on Vimeo or via Dropbox download:
Choosing Hope – Teaching Module #1
This 10-minute Teaching Module from the film BEYOND BELIEF focuses on the choice two women make after their husbands are killed on September 11th. They choose action over indifference, tolerance over hate, hope over despair. Susan Retik and Patti Quigley believe that by forging meaning connections with the women of Afghanistan, they are fighting terrorism and building peace… one woman at a time. They start an organization to help Afghan war widows and rebuild their own lives in the process. It is a story of post-traumatic growth, compassion and healing.
View it on Vimeo.
Dropbox download.
The Women Under the Burqa – Teaching Module #2
This 10-minute Teaching Module from the film BEYOND BELIEF focuses on understanding the lives of Afghan widows who are highly vulnerable and trapped in an ever-deepening cycle of extreme poverty and helplessness. Hear from the Afghan women themselves as they shed light on the roles of education, empowerment and friendship in creating lasting social change.
View it on Vimeo.
Dropbox download.
Impact Campaign
We believe that Susan and Patti offer a powerful antidote to the rhetoric of fear and intolerance that so often clouds discussion of September 11th. And we’re not the only ones! Their work has been recognized by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and President Barack Obama, who awarded Susan the Presidential Citizens’ Medal.
Thanks to support from the Fledgling Fund and Mass Humanities we are partnering with non-profits, faith-based groups and educators across the country. Screenings of the film have helped raise tens of thousands of dollars to support Beyond the 11th and projects that are changing women’s lives for the better. One of our proudest achievements is having contributed to the building of the very first women’s community center in Bamiyan.
If you or your organization is interested in joining our campaign, please contact us at info@principlepictures.com. You can easily host a screening of the film by purchasing a DVD with public performance rights.
About Beyond the 11th
Beyond the 11th is a non-profit foundation that provides Afghan widows, one of the world’s most vulnerable populations, with job skills so they can start small businesses and generate income to support themselves and their children, thereby lifting themselves from poverty and dependence. Since 2003, Beyond the 11th has awarded over $600,000 in grants to promote economic and educational independence for the widows of Afghanistan.
The organization was founded by 9/11 widows Susan Retik and Patti Quigley. Rather than respond to their unspeakable loss with anger or despair, they opened their hearts to the plight of Afghan widows, among the most destitute people in the world. By empowering Afghan widows, Retik and Quigley hoped Afghan children might grow up with stability and education—powerful antidotes to the hopelessness that can spawn violent extremism. In 2005, ready to shed the public identity of perpetual 9/11 widow, Patti Quigley stepped down from the organization to pursue other initiatives in Afghanistan. Susan Retik continues as President of Beyond the 11th.
To learn more or make a donation that will directly support Afghan widows and their families, please visit: http://www.beyondthe11th.org/
